1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a computerized method and system for formulating haircolor.
2. Description of the Related Art
The process of coloring hair is one that contains a great many variables and possible outcomes. Hair stylists attempt to more fully define this process through the use of notes, charts provided by haircolor manufacturers, past experience, and consultation with other hair stylists. The typical client of a haircoloring stylist will request a specific target haircolor. It is up to the hair stylist to determine the optimal formulas, process steps and application times required to achieve the specified target haircolor. The resulting post color application haircolor is determined in part by the current haircolor, the process steps followed, the previous applications of color or other haircolor products, environmental factors, and the like. This plethora of variables is particularly vexing to the novice hair stylist. The same hair dye often has dramatically different effects when used on two different clients. These variations are frequently due to subtle differences in the color, texture, and porosity of the two client's hair.
As novices become more adept in the art, their haircoloring skills become more refined. Frequently, junior hair stylists are trained by a more senior haircoloring expert. This expert has experience identifying the factors involved in haircoloring and thus can produce haircolor formulas and processes with a higher degree of success. However, even an expert in the field can be confounded by the variability in haircolors that are provided by different haircolor manufacturers. Hair stylists are often taught their trade at a specific salon. A given salon typically utilizes a single color line (i.e. a set of haircoloring products from one manufacturer). Thus, the stylist learns the haircoloring techniques associated with a specific color line. Should the stylist transition to a different salon, he or she may need to relearn these haircoloring techniques employing a different color line.
These interdependent variables frequently result in a haircolor that is not the same as the target color specified by the client. This mismatch between expected and actual colors will result in an unhappy client, loss of business by the hair stylist, and damage to the reputation of the salon.
There are multiple reasons a person wishes to have his or her hair colored. For example, one may wish to undergo a color change from a natural haircolor to a different haircolor (i.e. a “virgin application”). One may wish to reapply haircolor to the newly grown roots of previously colored hair (i.e. a “retouch application”). Additionally, one may wish to apply streaks of color to selected portions of the hair (i.e. a “foil application”). One may wish to change haircolor from a non-natural haircolor to a different color (i.e. a “retouch”). In any or all of these application types, one should preferably identify a number of properties of the hair prior to applying the haircolor. Such properties include, but are not limited to, starting color (either natural or non-natural), hair texture, tenacity, porosity, percentage of gray, previous haircoloring history, and the like. Additionally, the dying process may be comprised of more than one step. One may need to “pre-lighten” the hair by applying a high-lifting color or bleach before the coloring step. One may need to “tone” the hair by applying a mixture of haircolor and developer after the coloring step.
As is known to one skilled in the art, haircoloring follows the traditional rules of complimentary colors. Reference will be had to FIG. 3 wherein a color star is depicted. The primary colors of red, yellow, and blue, and the secondary colors of orange, green, and violet are illustrated in this color star. The secondary colors are mixtures of two primary colors (e.g. orange is a mixture of yellow and red). Similarly, tertiary colors can be generated by mixing a primary and a secondary color (e.g. yellow-orange (gold) which is a mixture of yellow and orange). As is apparent to one of ordinary skill in the art, one can use this color star to identify complimentary (i.e. counteracting) colors to shift the color of hair. To neutralize a given shade, one treats with that shade's complimentary color. Thus, by way of illustration, to remove red, one would apply a green dye.
As is apparent, the typical color of most human hair is not a simple primary color combination. Without wishing to be bound to any particular theory, applicants believe that all haircolor is essentially based on shades of the tertiary color brown plus one dominating tone. For example, blonde hair is simply the lightest brown with dominating yellow. Red hair is brown with dominating orange. Black hair is a dark brown with dominant blue.
One can utilize the color star to shift the color of a client's hair from a first color to a second color using haircoloring products which are commercially available. By way of illustration, one may use the haircoloring products of MATRIX®. By way of further illustration, one may use the haircoloring products of other manufacturers such as Redken®, Schwartzkopf®, Nexxus®, Goldwell® and others. Although each of the manufacturers provides the elements necessary to generate haircolor formulas, it is often necessary for the stylist to actually produce the formulas based on the stylist's experience. The manufacturers offer only generalized guidelines to assist in the production of formulas.
Many of these haircoloring formulas have common elements. Typically, a haircolor formula comprises four or more ingredients, including ammonia, a base, color pigments, and a developer. It should be noted that the exact nature of the ingredients varies by color line, adding to the complexity of the coloring process. Thus a stylist who is experienced with one color line may have difficultly making formulas with the elements provided by a second color line.
The base provides the medium for application and may optionally include additional hair treatment agents, for example moisturizer and the like. Typical bases include creams, oils, waxes, shampoos, panthenol, wheat proteins, and the like. The color pigments provide the coloration for a particular dye. Most color pigments function by adhering to proteins found in hair. Ammonia provides two functions. Firstly, it provides an alkaline pH which promotes the adhesion of the color pigment to the hair. Secondly, it swells the hair for easy penetration of the color pigments. The last ingredient, developer, is typically an oxidizing agent, such as Hydrogen Peroxide, which functions to “lift” a degree of color from the hair, thus making it lighter. In one embodiment, oxygen gas is released during the oxidation. This localized concentration of oxygen promotes the adhesion of color pigments. Color lines often refer to developer in terms of 10 Volume, 20 Volume, 30 Volume, or 40 Volume. The term Volume, as used in this specification, means the concentration of Hydrogen Peroxide in the developer, where 10 Volume is equal to 3% Hydrogen Peroxide, 20 Volume is equal to 6% Hydrogen Peroxide, 30 Volume is equal to 9% Hydrogen Peroxide, and 40 Volume is equal to 12% Hydrogen Peroxide. As would be apparent to those skilled in the art, a 10 Volume developer will provide “1 level of lift”, whereas a 40 Volume developer will provide “4 levels of lift”. Bleach may be added to the developer to promote lifting.
Variability in the color products is only one of the variables that must be considered. Additionally, the application type (i.e. virgin, retouch, foil, etc.) must be considered. The application type that is being used will vary the processing steps involved. It may alter, for example, the time the product is exposed to the hair. Additionally, previous coloring of hair can complicate the re-coloring process, as previous haircolor as well as the natural haircolor must be taken into consideration.
The stylist must typically formulate a haircolor formula using a mixture of two or more of the above mentioned formula elements in order to change hair from a first to a second color. Given the aforementioned complexities, the sheer number of possible formulas is staggering. Before the advent of the applicants' invention, stylists were only able to generate quality formulas after obtaining years of experience working with one specific color line.
As is apparent, the haircoloring process is extremely complex. There has been a long felt need in the trade to simplify this difficult process. In an attempt to address the issue, the various color lines have published general instructions to attempt to guide the hair stylist through this complicated and error prone process. For example, MATRIX® distributes swatches of hair for their SOCOLOR® color line as examples of various colors. MATRIX® SOCOLOR® provides 11 samples of “neutral” colors (i.e. natural haircolors) and designates them as colors 1 to 11. MATRIX® SOCOLOR® further provides swatches of hair that have been treated with various colored pigments, in order to show the various target colors that the color line provides. A hair stylist can match the client's natural haircolor with one of the 11 colors provided by MATRIX® SOCOLOR®. Then a target color is selected. The stylist further estimates the percentage of gray in the client's hair. Then, based on experience, the hair stylist will custom formulate a haircolor mixture (using the products provided by MATRIX®) based on combinations of the four basic haircolor formula elements. Additionally, based on the experience of the stylist, further steps may be added (pre-lightening or toning) to fine tune the haircolor. Clearly, if a different color line were used (i.e. not MATRIX®) then the past experience of the stylist would be of limited value. For example, a different color line may utilize more or less than 11 colors of natural haircolor as well as different target colors. The quality of the resulting haircolor is therefore highly dependent on the experience of the stylist. Frequently experienced hair stylists consult with junior hair stylists and maintain their own notes regarding formulas, process times, steps, client history, and the like. The success of the haircolor formula is therefore highly dependent on the experience and skill of a stylist, making the haircoloring process highly subjective, error prone, and stylist specific. It would be desirous to diminish the dependency of the formula process on the experience of a stylist and specific color line, in order to create a knowledge base that results in consistent and predictable haircoloring results for each client. A computer implemented method and system for determining haircolor could greatly assist both the beginner as well as the experienced hair stylist.
It is an object of the present invention to provide a computer based method and system for accurately determining haircolor. It is another object of the present invention to provide a computer based method and system for accurately determining haircolor that interfaces with a salon management software package. It is another object of the present invention to provide a computer based method and system for accurately determining haircolor that is highly portable. It is yet another object of the present invention to provide a computer based method and system for accurately determining haircolor that can be updated and modified through interaction with a Web site. It is another object of the present invention to provide a computer based method and system for accurately determining haircolor that uses a color scanning instrument to determine initial haircolor.